Meet the Search Advocates
Name: Maggie apRoberts-Warren, PhD (she/her/hers)
Position: Associate Professor in Economics and Bonsor Endowed Chair.
I am excited to be a Search Advocate at Eastern and to help the University find and attract the best and brightest talent. I look forward to helping units conduct searches where everyone has an equal voice at the table and equal shot at employment and to help facilitate communication while also challenging problematic thinking.
Name: Bipasha Biswas, PhD (she/her/hers)
Position: Professor in Social Work, BASW Program Director at School of Social Work. Affiliated Faculty Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies.
Bipasha – a social work educator and scholar activist working with refugees and immigrants in Spokane. As an immigrant/expat, I am interested in developing culturally relevant and responsive interventions to support resettlement efforts by highlighting equity and inclusiveness on all walks of life. Been at the School of Social Work since 2012, would like to see multiculturalism thrive at EWU!
Name: Caroline Dias, MA (she/her/hers)
Position: Director of the Program Leading to University Success (PLUS) which is the centralized academic support for students and is housed in the JFK Library main floor.
My name is Caroline Dias. I have been working here at EWU and the PLUS program since 2017. I have spent my entire 30+ year career in the education field. I spent 10 years as a classroom teacher for kindergarten and Head Start Pre-K serving marginalized populations in central California. For over 12 years I served as an Assistant Director of Advising & Retention for a university in California where my focus was on first generation and transfer students. During this time, I co-authored a Bachelor’s program in Early Childhood Development and a concentration of Early Childhood Leadership in a Master of Arts in Education program. I bring vast experience working with marginalized, first-generation students from pre-K to university graduate students including working with parents. These experiences have given me a strong commitment to student success and retention with the students at EWU.
Name: Kelly Evans, MA, MLS (she/her/hers)
Position: Associate Professor, Business and Health Sciences Librarian, Faculty Organization Treasurer.
My name is Kelly Evans, she/her/hers and I have been at EWU for 11 years. I have extensive leadership and collaboration experience with the Faculty Organization as well as with many other groups across campus. I practice an equity mindset in my work with others and with EWU students. I am well versed in conflict resolution as well as consensus building.
Name: Melissa Graham, PhD (she/her/hers)
Position: Senior Lecturer, Department of Mathematics. Faculty Fellow for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice, CSTEM. Chair of CSTEM’s DEI Committee.
Hi, I am Dr. Melissa Graham. I’ve been teaching in the Department of Mathematics for 18 years and am currently a Senior Lecturer. My research and teaching interests center on preservice and practicing mathematics teacher learning, especially related to equity-directed instructional practices. Creating equitable opportunities for students in math and science is my passion. I am currently the Faculty Fellow for DEIJ for the College of STEM and am working to establish a MESA Center at EWU in this upcoming year. I also am actively involved in EWU’s College in the High School Program, which allows many students around the state an opportunity to earn EWU credit while in high school. As a Search Advocate, I bring experience from these roles in addition to a knowledge of our institutional history.
Name: Marissa Jenks-Barajas, MSW, LICSWA (she/her/ella)
Position: Psychological Counselor & Group Coordinator – Counseling and Wellness Services (I also serve as the liaison between our office and CAMP.)
Hello! My name is Marissa Jenks-Barajas and I use she/her/ella pronouns. I am a first generation college graduate and a proud member of the Latinx & LGBTQIA+ community. My educational background is in social work with my current focus being mental health. Working in CWS has given me great perspective for what our students at EWU are struggling with & where certain barriers or gaps tend to be. In social work we are taught that “everyone is the expert of their own life” and this is the framework I tend to use when working with other people. My other areas of interest include identifying implicit biases, cultural competency, and cultural humility. My personal belief is that the best way to solve challenges is by actively listening and continuing to ask questions until we have all the information that is needed.
Name: Joanna Joyner-Matos, PhD (she/her/hers)
Position: Professor of Biology and Special Assistant to the Provost for Research and Grants.
I am a Professor of Biology. Most of my teaching supports students who are interested in clinical careers. My research focuses on two areas. First, I study the stress physiology of animals that live in challenging environments, such as those polluted by mining wastes. Second, I study ways to decrease the barriers that keep certain groups of students from succeeding in science. It is from this second area that I come to the Search Advocate program, as I am focused on understanding how the structures of academia prevent us from making this university and my discipline accessible to everyone – and then working to alter those structures.
Name: Brent Olinger, MA (he/him/his)
Position: Retention Specialist in the PLUS Program.
Hi, I’m Brent Olinger. I’ve worked in higher education for over 7 years within student and academic affairs. I’ve worked in student leadership programs, campus activities, housing, TRIO Student Support Services, academic advising and now tutoring support services. As a certified Gallup Strengths coach, I believe that understanding individual strengths on teams is essential in the search process. I bring my strengths in strategic thinking, ideation, input, achiever, and analytical skills in everything that I do. My goal as a search advocate is to provide constructive feedback, strategize to create an inclusive search process, and implement welcoming onboarding for selected candidates.
Name: Sabine Rishell, MA (she/her/hers)
Position: Assistant Director of Donor Engagement, University Advancement.
As a Seach Advocate, I believe strongly in equity and objectivity during the hiring process. It is important that Eastern’s workforce has as many diverse perspectives as possible to support its student body and campus community. Eastern serves a critical role in developing the future of our community and as a Search Advocate, it is my goal to be resource to the University in building the teams and academic environment that reflects the values Eastern represents.
Name: Linda Safford, MA (she/her/hers) or (they/them/theirs)
Position: Senior Director of Annual Giving, University Advancement. I have completed the EWU Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Certificate and I am currently enrolled in the Master of Science – Organizational Leadership program. I also serve as a member of the Institutional Assessment Committee.
I joined the EWU University Advancement team in January of 2022, a new chapter in my nonprofit leadership career that began with a brief foray into business and entrepreneurship before finding my passion as an Operations Director with the Zoological Society of San Diego. I completed my BA and MA in Literature & Writing at California State University San Marcos, where I also taught general education writing to many first-generation students not unlike our own Eastern Eagles. I relocated to Spokane in 2007 when I accepted the position of Development Director for the eastern region of Special Olympics Washington. Then, quite by surprise, my husband was transferred to Memphis, Tennessee, where I was privileged to work with the largest HIV/AIDS social service provider in the Mid-South region through a grant from the Ford Foundation. When we returned to Spokane, I continued to help grassroots nonprofit organizations build fund development programs before joining EWU in 2022.
My husband is a proud Eagle alum, and I will be too upon my completion of the MS – Organizational Leadership program in June 2025. I am Mom to three adult daughters scattered across the country, Dog Mom to a feral Carolina Dog and a Great Pyrenees mix, and an avid DIYer and gardener. I have received professional recognition for my team management skills, and I gravitate to challenges that require strategic thinking and vision. I value authenticity, fairness, accountability and compassion.
Name: Margretta Scammell-Renner, MA (she/her/hers)
Position: Director of Philanthropy, College of Professional Programs.
I joined EWU in March 2024 after leaving my career in Healthcare and taking a break to begin my journey of earning my Master’s Degree. I am thrilled for the opportunity to serve as a Search Advocate for EWU. In my past role I had the opportunity to work in healthcare facilities across Eastern Washington partnering with a diverse team of professionals and working to serve and support local rural and urban communities. I am passionate about building strong teams and giving back to the community.
Name: Hannah Stephens (she/her/hers) or (they/them/theirs)
Position: Admissions Representative, Admissions/Visitor Center.
Hello! My name is Hannah Stephens. I have been a professional staff member of EWU since March, 2024. I graduated from EWU in 2018 with a double major in Sociology and Women’s and Gender Studies. Before starting here, I was a Crime Victim Advocate for victims of crime in the Spokane County region. It was my responsibility to ensure that my clients were understanding the legal and medical processes they were engaging in as a result of their circumstances. Clear and honest communication is important to me and has impacted how I take on any role given to me. I have been eager to shift gears and continue to help people understand what processes they are going through and what steps they need to take to set themselves up for success. I am happy to help wherever I can and get people the answers they need.
